At the same time, in Washington State, people were searching through the wreckage left behind from a deadly mudslide that devastated the community of Oso. After eight days of searching, even the rescue dogs were in need of rest. The death toll had reached 25, with 30 people still missing. Those involved in the search made clear, in spite of the conditions and challenges, the search was going to continue on.
In Luke 15 Jesus tells a parable about a shepherd who goes searching after one lost sheep “until he finds it” (v. 4). He follows that with a parable about a woman who loses a coin and then lights a lamp, sweeps the house and searches carefully until she finds it (v. 8). Both parables make the point about how the Lord engages in an all-out search to find lost sinners.
The parables were in response to the teachers of the law muttering that Jesus “welcomes sinners and eats with them” (Luke 15:1). The teachers did not understand or appreciate what Jesus was doing. He came “to seek and to save what was lost” (Luke 19:10). He was willing to enter the homes of those society pushed away. He befriended those who were often scorned by the world. He is the good shepherd who engages in an all-out determined search for those who are lost.
The searches going on in the southern Indian Ocean and Washington State are commendable and impressive, but they are no comparison to the amazing search the Lord has conducted for you. The mud in Washington is a messy place to search. The spiritual filth of this world was a much dirtier place for the holy, pure Messiah to come to and live and search. But He humbled Himself and came. The search zone off of Australia is a long ways for the searchers to travel. Our mind cannot conceive of the distance from the glorious throne of heaven to the painful hill of the cross. But Jesus made the journey.
The Lord continues to search. He searches until He finds. When others give up and say there is no chance of recovering that lost soul, the Lord keeps searching. Jesus is searching today for your friend and loved one who doesn’t know Christ. If you’re not right with the Lord, Jesus is searching for you.
With the Malaysian jet and the Washington mudslide, there seems now to be little chance of finding any survivors still alive. But with the Lord’s search for lost souls there is great hope. No matter how far a person has wandered, if they are humbly willing to be found there is hope. Jesus, the crucified and risen One, is able to find them and give them new life.
This is a monthly missions devotional by Pastor Craig Johnson
